In Huffington Post Blog, the International Planned Parenthood Federation Urges Action to Stop Sexual Abuse and Violence Against Women and Children Syrian Refugees

WASHINGTON, Feb. 4, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Tewodros Melesse, Director-General of the London-based International Planned Parenthood Federation, has posted a blog at the Huffington Post, urging for an end to the sexual abuse and violence against women and children Syrian refugees.

"The humanitarian situation in Syria has sharply deteriorated and though media interest in the conflict has ebbed and flowed the crisis affecting Syrians has steadily grown," he writes. "Breaches of human rights by both sides and, as bombardment and shooting has continued so has another war – a war of sexual assault and violence against women and girls."

Melesse writes that the impact on women and children has been "devastating." He said that of the six million refugees and displaced Syrians, 79 percent are women and children, and 25 percent are women of childbearing age. "They urgently need massive international support to protect them from the widespread sexual abuse they face, as well as other health and nutritional concerns," he writes.

IPPF's member association in Syria, the Syrian Family Planning Association (SFPA), operates 18 clinics, 47 non-clinical outlets, 20 medical teams, and four mobile teams to provide medical services for internally displaced families and individuals. Although SFPA's work focuses on women and children, SFPA has also provided medical care and health services for hundreds of thousands of Syrian men, and its efforts are growing.

To schedule broadcast or print interviews with Mr. Melesse or IPPF associates on the ground in the Middle East, please contact Michael K. Frisby, 202-625-4328 or mike@frisbyassociates.com . Headquartered in London and founded in 1952, The International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF) is both a service provider and an advocate of sexual and reproductive health and rights. The organization is a worldwide network of 152 Member Associations active in over 170 countries. Learn more at www.ippf.org